Los Angeles Dodgers should not be concerned with Craig Kimbrel yet
Craig Kimbrel has been anything but automatic for the Los Angeles Dodgers lately. He has been able to notch seven saves in his past 13 appearances, but has also been charged with a blown save and three losses in that time.
It is actually a bit surprising that Kimbrel has gone 7-8 in save opportunities in that time frame. He has given up 12 runs, ten earned, on 15 hits, eight walks, and a hit batter in his last 12.1 innings. While he has struck out 24 batters, he has been an adventure in the ninth inning. That performance would seem to be more than enough to cause concern.
Craig Kimbrel more than numbers suggest for Los Angeles Dodgers lately
Yet, that performance is not quite what it appears to be. Opponents have a .519 batting average on balls in play against him in that time frame. He has not given up a single barrel in that span, leading to a hard hit rate below 30%. His 2.26 FIP supports the metrics, indicating that Kimbrel has been extremely unlucky of late.
At the same time, one can understand that potential concern. Kimbrel had struggled in 2019 and 2020 before dominating in the first half of the 2021 season. He struggled once more after being traded to the White Sox, although his issues were blamed on being in an unfamiliar setup role.
This is not the same situation. Kimbrel has pitched well even if the statistics do not show that to be the case. While the numbers will eventually even themselves out, they also get amplified in those one inning stints. Such is the case with Kimbrel and why the Dodgers should not be concerned – yet.
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Craig Kimbrel has struggled for the Los Angeles Dodgers over the past month. His metrics show that they should not worry just yet.